The dawn of a new era? Or something like that
Morning, everyone. How’s things?

Pretty zany night, no?

Some day I’ll tell you about it. Just suffice it to say that when you’re a barbecue guest at the home of good friends (Hi, Sue, Mike, Eric and Nicole!) and you’re fielding calls and e-mails and writing a story on a Blackberry, it takes a bit longer than you’d hope. Got it in about 10:30, which gave me time to at least end a lovely night relaxing.

But I will also say that I’m quite glad we never jumped on the Hedo-to-Portland’s-done on our own. Far better to put it out there on someone else’s hook until you’re absolutely sure. And there was never, ever a time that I was absolutely sure he was going to Portland, which is why prudence is sometimes the best.

Anyway …

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So, Turk, eh?

What’s it mean?

Let’s look at some pros:

Another good ball-handler and initiator on the court.

A guy you can give the ball to at the end of the game and say, ‘make a play’ while you stretch the floor with Jose (a very good three-point shooter) in the corner.

Let’s just say – as Jeff Blair first pointed out on a radio show last night – that Bosh leaves (and no, I don’t have any idea if he will). Do you feel more comfortable going forward with Calderon, Bargnani and Turkoglu or Calderon, Bargnani and Marion? A no-brainer over here.

You can put Hedo and Bargnani in the pick and roll; you could never do that with Shawn.

Can you make this case: Toronto has the same kind of starting lineup now as the defending Eastern Conference champions? To wit: Calderon as Nelson, only better at many things like, oh, shooting and dishing out assists; Bosh in the Howard role, the guy who rolls to the basket on the high screen and roll, a far more accomplished scorer and while not a defensive intimidator, he’s passable; Bargnani does as much offensively as Lewis (check the stats, they are almost exactly the same); Turkoglu’s Turkoglu and, well, maybe DeMar DeRozan becomes Courtney Lee, which I don’t think is a stretch because now he doesn’t have to do anything offensively except make cuts to the basket, get on the boards and use his athleticism.

Let’s look at some cons:

The bench may not be deep. But Ukic this year will be an improvement over Solomon last year; Reggie Evans remains an excellent pickup and, believe me, Bryan’s trying to get something done to get another two and/or three in town. Right now, that’s a concern. There is also a lot of time between now and October.

Too much money. Turk’s deal is big but they’ve projected the numbers out and it won’t hamper them doing something with Bargnani or Bosh when the time comes.

Poor defence. Yes, another concern. But with a full training camp to install a system and the presence of Mark Iavaroni, it might not be as bad as you think. As one guy who’s in the gym with them a lot said to me yesterday: “If we work on defence every day, they have to get better.”

So, there you have some.

Debate away.

Oh, and there’s this.

Here are some names that a guy in the organization gave me yesterday as possible guys who’ll fall through the cracks and be available on minimum salary deals when the economic pinch is truly felt later this summer:

The point is, in these economic times, there will be bargains to be had and the one thing the Raptors can offer is a chance to play minutes, which is just what a guy on a minimum value deal wants more than anything.

Can they get a significant name? I don’t know, but there’s a chance they’ll get someone who’s more than a warm body at the end of the bench.

I'd actually like Von Wafer over anyone on that list. that guy really impressed me with his demeanor and athleticism in the rockets lakers series. i'd take that guy in a heartbeat

Yeah, but i dont like players who complain for minutes. Who the fuck was this guy before Adelmen came and then he starts complaining for minutes in the post season. He is a player who just waits in the pocket and will drive only one in a while and it is premeditaded so charges can be drawn.

this is the same D Smith that said Smitch wouldn't be fired, Marion trade wouldn't go down and said a couple days ago that the Raps weren't going to sign Hedo

lmao, I'd have to quit writing, that's a ridiculous track record.. he needs to be fired lol. Did I read that right? did he write that article on his blackberry??? that's weak, what's the world coming to...

moon's not going to come back because after we traded him to the heat they obtained the rights to match any offer for him
the only way i'd want moon is if we got him back for less than $1 million/year, now considering that is a dirt cheap contract, its almost guaranteed that the heat would just match that and keep him, so really in the end he's either getting an overpaying contract from some other team or he's staying with the heat
there's no way joey is coming back because frankly he probably expects as much as delfino does, and if you take it that way then its like 100% guarantee you'd rather take delfino
i'm pretty sure BC is happy to be able to just release joey